Artists’ strong message could be more visually compelling

Just as there are activists in society worried about global warming, so there are artists who are equally concerned. The great German conceptualist, Joseph Beuys, got there first in 1985 with his Capri Battery - a lemon-powered light bulb whose modesty as a work of art belies the gravity of its message.

It pretty much sets the agenda for this companion show to ‘In Another Time,’ the main event next door. There’s no question of the strength of conviction of these six artists or artist groups. This comes across strongly in the work.

But their message is rarely delivered in a visually compelling way. The gallery seems sadly austere, with a good deal of information needing to be read, even on the outside of Nils Norman’s bus shelter-cum-greenhouse.

But there’s nothing of the hair shirt about Carole Collet’s elegant video of a speculative future, where form follows function down strange but sustainable biological avenues where plants would produce ready-made textiles by dint of genetic juggling.

Its crazily bold prediction leaves you greedy for more.

But isn’t that how we got into this mess in the first place?

Peter McCarthy